US-12619157-B2 - Optical lithography system and method of using the same

Abstract

In an embodiment, an apparatus includes an energy source, a support platform for holding a wafer, an optical path extending from the energy source to the support platform, and a photomask aligned such that a patterned major surface of the photomask is parallel to the force of gravity, where the optical path passes through the photomask, where the patterned major surface of the photomask is perpendicular to a topmost surface of the support platform.

Inventors

• Hung-Jui Kuo
• Ting-Yang Yu
• Ming-Tan LEE

Assignees

• TAIWAN SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING CO., LTD.

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20240604

Claims (20)

1. 1 . An apparatus comprising: a radiation source; a support platform for holding a wafer; a photomask disposed over the support platform, wherein the photomask is configured to receive radiation from the radiation source, and allow the radiation to be transmitted through the photomask and onto a surface of the wafer; and a pressurized chamber below the photomask, wherein a bottom surface of the photomask and a topmost surface of a substrate define the pressurized chamber, wherein gas in the pressurized chamber exerts a pressure on a single surface of the photomask, the pressure being an upward pressure on the bottom surface of the photomask.
2. 2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein a horizontal width between outermost sidewalls of the photomask is greater than a horizontal width of the pressurized chamber at the widest point of the pressurized chamber.
3. 3 . The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the pressurized chamber has a pressure that is higher than atmospheric pressure.
4. 4 . The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the substrate comprises a transparent material.
5. 5 . The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the substrate has a top surface and a bottom surface coated with an anti-reflection coating (ARC).
6. 6 . The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a light pipe, wherein a length of the light pipe is parallel to a patterned major surface of the photomask.
7. 7 . The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the light pipe comprises a cold mirror, a shutter, and a condenser assembly.
8. 8 . An apparatus comprising: a radiation source; a wafer chuck for holding a wafer; an optical path extending from the radiation source to the wafer chuck; a photomask aligned over the wafer, wherein the optical path passes through the photomask and onto a surface of the wafer; a pressurized chamber disposed between the photomask and a substrate; and a translation stage configured to support the wafer chuck, wherein the translation stage comprises a motor, and wherein the translation stage and the photomask are configured to have their movements be synchronized to each other.
9. 9 . The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the substrate comprises a transparent material.
10. 10 . The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the substrate comprises glass.
11. 11 . The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the photomask is configured to withstand a higher amount of stress before failure than the substrate.
12. 12 . The apparatus of claim 8 , further comprising a lens assembly that is disposed between the photomask and the wafer chuck.
13. 13 . The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the lens assembly is a Wynne-Dyson projection lens with 1:1 imaging optics.
14. 14 . The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the substrate has a top surface and a bottom surface with an anti-reflection coating (ARC).
15. 15 . The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the photomask is above and overlaps the substrate.
16. 16 . An apparatus comprising: a radiation source; a wafer chuck for supporting a wafer; a photomask disposed over the wafer chuck, wherein the photomask is configured to receive radiation from the radiation source, and allow the radiation to be transmitted through the photomask and onto a surface of the wafer; and a rigid enclosure below the photomask, wherein the rigid enclosure is disposed between the photomask and a substrate, and wherein the rigid enclosure has a pressure that is higher than atmospheric pressure.
17. 17 . The apparatus of claim 16 , further comprising a light pipe used to direct the radiation from the radiation source through the photomask to the wafer chuck, the light pipe being between the radiation source and the photomask.
18. 18 . The apparatus of claim 17 , wherein the light pipe has a longitudinal axis extending in a direction perpendicular with the force of gravity.
19. 19 . The apparatus of claim 17 , wherein the light pipe comprises a cold mirror, a shutter, and a condenser assembly.
20. 20 . The apparatus of claim 17 , wherein the light pipe further comprises a filter insertion configured to allow the insertion of different filters into the light pipe.

Description

PRIORITY CLAIM AND CROSS-REFERENCE This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 18/065,391, entitled “Optical Lithography System and Method of Using the Same,” filed on Dec. 13, 2022, which is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/371,204, entitled “Optical Lithography System and Method of Using the Same,” filed on Jul. 9, 2021, now U.S. Pat. No. 11,960,211, issued on Apr. 16, 2024, which applications are incorporated herein by reference. BACKGROUND Semiconductor devices are used in a variety of electronic applications, such as, for example, personal computers, cell phones, digital cameras, and other electronic equipment. Semiconductor devices are typically fabricated by sequentially depositing insulating or dielectric layers, conductive layers, and semiconductor layers of material over a semiconductor substrate, and patterning the various material layers using lithography to form circuit components and elements thereon. The semiconductor industry continues to improve the integration density of various electronic components (e.g., transistors, diodes, resistors, capacitors, etc.) by continual reductions in minimum feature size, which allow more components to be integrated into a given area. However, as the minimum features sizes are reduced, additional problems arise that should be addressed. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Aspects of the present disclosure are best understood from the following detailed description when read with the accompanying figures. It is noted that, in accordance with the standard practice in the industry, various features are not drawn to scale. In fact, the dimensions of the various features may be arbitrarily increased or reduced for clarity of discussion. FIGS. 1 through 7 illustrate cross-sectional views of intermediate steps during a process for forming a first package structure, in accordance with some embodiments. FIGS. 8A through 11 illustrate cross-sectional views of optical lithography systems used to process a first package, in accordance with some embodiments. FIGS. 12 through 15 illustrate cross-sectional views of intermediate steps during a process for further forming a first package and for attaching other package structures to the first package, in accordance with some embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION The following disclosure provides many different embodiments, or examples, for implementing different features of the invention. Specific examples of components and arrangements are described below to simplify the present disclosure. These are, of course, merely examples and are not intended to be limiting. For example, the formation of a first feature over or on a second feature in the description that follows may include embodiments in which the first and second features are formed in direct contact, and may also include embodiments in which additional features may be formed between the first and second features, such that the first and second features may not be in direct contact. In addition, the present disclosure may repeat reference numerals and/or letters in the various examples. This repetition is for the purpose of simplicity and clarity and does not in itself dictate a relationship between the various embodiments and/or configurations discussed. Further, spatially relative terms, such as “beneath,” “below,” “lower,” “above,” “upper” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. The spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. The apparatus may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein may likewise be interpreted accordingly. Various embodiments provide improved apparatuses for patterning semiconductor devices and semiconductor apparatuses formed using the same. The embodiments of the present disclosure are discussed in the context of providing various configurations of an optical lithography system to support a photomask that is used with the optical lithographic system in order to form semiconductor devices and/or semiconductor packages, such as an integrated Fan-Out (InFO) package. In embodiments, an optical lithography system may include a vertical mask chuck that aligns the photomask such that a patterned major surface of the photomask is parallel to the force of gravity, reducing sagging of the photomask due to gravitational effects. An optical lithography system may include a pressurized chamber below the photomask, which uses gas pressure to tune the photomask surface curvature (e.g., tuning the photomask curvature from concave to convex) and reduce sagging of the photomask due to gravitational effects. An optical lithography system may include a vacuumed chamber above the photomask, which uses a v